Raise the Umbrella: Occupy anthem may become Hong Kong's song of the year

When Lo Hiu-pan wrote a song in reaction to the tear-gassing of pro-democracy protesters a few months ago, he never imagined it would become one of the most representative anthems of Hong Kong's "umbrella movement".

has not only captured the zeitgeist of the protest movement, it's in the running to be named "My Favourite" song of the year in Commercial Radio's annual music awards. A release by the station yesterday showed that made the top five songs; the final result will revealed at its awards ceremony on New Year's Day.

(While other Commercial Radio awards are based on airplay, the "My Favourite" categories, which include male artist, female artist and group, are based on an online one-person-one-vote system.)

Lo, 25, composed the melody and lyrics of in less than 48 hours, after riot police fired tear gas at protesters in Admiralty and Central on the night of September 28.

"As a Hongkonger and music lover, I wanted to create a kind of 'supply' for the protesters," Lo recalls of his creative process. "I simply hoped my song could comfort and encourage everyone supporting the movement for democracy."

He recorded in a tiny rented studio in Kwun Tong, uploaded it to YouTube under the pen name Pan, and in an attempt to reach a wider audience, contacted local pop star Denise Ho Wan-see, who he knew was a supporter of the movement. Ho was receptive, and enlisted the help of music industry peers such as singer Anthony Wong Yiu-ming and lyricist Lam Jik.